(Warsaw) Poland, which is organizing the ministerial meeting of the OSCE in early December, has refused entry into its territory to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the organization’s presidency told AFP on Friday.
“We expect the Russian Federation to choose the members of its delegation in accordance with the regulations in force,” explained a source within this rotating annual presidency, currently held by Warsaw.
According to her, the Russian delegation should not “include persons sanctioned by the European Union (EU) as a result of Russia’s illegal aggression against Ukraine on February 24, including Minister Lavrov”.
Polish Foreign Ministry spokesman Lukasz Jasina also told AFP that he was not planning “a visit by Minister Lavrov to Lodz”, a city in central Poland where the meeting of 57 foreign ministers is to be held. of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) on 1er and December 2 in Lodz.
The Polish OSCE Chairmanship claims to have received a letter of protest from the Russian delegation following this decision.
Since its creation in 1975 in the midst of the Cold War to foster East-West dialogue, the OSCE has been based in Vienna, Austria.
Contacted by AFP, the Russian representation in Vienna declined to comment.
The annual ministerial meeting of the OSCE, in which Mr. Lavrov usually takes part, is the central organ of this international organization, responsible for its decisions.
It is an opportunity for Foreign Ministers to review the work of the OSCE in all its fields of activity.
After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Poland and the three Baltic states announced in September that they had agreed to temporarily restrict the entry into their territory of Russian citizens, even holders of European visas.